The Cecil Whig., 1887-06-18
Life, W hat We Make 1t.

W hlle the young are eagerly >urinl>lng
what lte is To bring TO them, and he old
are quietly pond"ring what il has brought
to them, a few realize to how lirg" All ex
ten, lIlc Is u~t what they themselves
make IT,. It, Is Il book. the pages oi which
are turned one by "ac, not merely to be
read. but Ia show us ever new aud SHIFT
irg scent s. aud also to II II ct our own
image.
The external world may be supposed to
present similar views to every one. Ger
tainly We cannot change, by lonkirg, its
mountains into valleys, or its cities INTO
PLAINS. Yet perhaps no twoprnplr. look
ing at the same scene. see it exact lly alike
Oue, gazing upon landscape, sees tx
uusite grace and beauty III the diversity
OF hill aud dale, lake or stream, Int up, il
may be, by sunset glorieS. Another sees
1t in the promise cf rich harveStS and
plentifIl returns. Another regards II
solely with view to the taci l s it oilers
tor new railroad; while Yet another
with dull or pre-occupied mind, gaZ-s
without consciously seeing anything at
all The scene is to each one what he
makes 1.-THE reelection of his own mind.
The cheerful and the melancholy man
look upon the very Same OBJ cts; to one,
they assume a bright and roseate hu', full
of Joy III the present. aud hope for the
future, while to the other, they suggust
ony weariness aud Glsapp ,lntment
Still more emphatically is this the case
in the social world The opinion men
hold of society is largely I, iisction OF
their own characters, and their Il tlIeuce
goes far towards making society ac.u ualll
conform to those opinions. The selfish
aud graspiug man is always imagining
those with whom he deals t. be selfish.
He excuses his own meai ness on the
ground that he must guard against the
meanness of others; and his excuse has
Just this foundation, that his own charac-
ter naturally ditfuses itself among those
with whom he deals. Every disposition
eXertS a magnetic attraction Tor It's like;
and the uu Just man, Will meet with in
Justice, the rude with rudeuess the COD
with coldness, and the proud aud jealous
with pride and jealousy. On the other
hand, the Just and true, the generous aud
kind, the gentle and loving draw to them
selves the same qualities IN Others, and
thus to them also is soclai lite what they
make it. No one can enter into the presence
of pure and good man without having
the better parts of his nature aroused and
his desire for improvement quckened.
The opinions expressed of society as a
whole are tolerably fair criterion of the
character of the one who olds them. IL
is the man of untlinching integrity who
has the most faith in the general honesty
of the community faith not shaken
by the occasional experience he meets of
the reverse. 1t is the unscrupulouS and
slippery man who suspects rOgucry III
every quarter aud ridlcules the very idea
of lilsinterestedness. He who complains
that the world is hollow and heartless un-
consciously c0nfesses his own Lack OF
sympathy, while he who believes that
people, as whole, are kindly and humane,
is certain to have the milk Of humL III kind
ness in his own nature.
The conditions and surroundings of lie
aIe also largely what we make them
This is the case. first OF all, through on
rrc: irtlrruce Pro-, prlty and i.dvcr-
III, are often Tie simple fleets If c"u-
duct. lmCuStr., thlit, skill, discretion.
piIrc! le urt, lie the ort; IdIrnrs%, rA-
r:.v; nc. s,li-l dulg"nce and toll, 8.
he oiI,r. As Il general rhIn:', "" l,"p
hal watch We inv" SpWn. Bur wh"re II
= OF 81, VIII !, circu instances over which
We have 10 control. come IN the form nl
tIiaIs OF joys, even these are greatly mod
Itied b. the spirit III which they ale It
cCivtd. W no has not seen poverty oI
Sickne IS or bereavement borne so heroic
ally and cbeertully that the ;.tlilcted one
seemed rather al object of envy than OF
c, II p:!ssiuI.? On the other hand, who
uas no; seen one with every outward ad-
vantage that earth has to bestow, render
ing himself and Others miserable by fret